Supported Transport (subsidised buses & Dial-A-Ride)

Visit our new web page for a list of bus routes affected by the removal of subsidies and information from bus operators about their intentions for these routes.

Date change

Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet met on 15 March and approved the plan to end all bus subsidies on 20 July 2016.

This date has been chosen to ensure bus services remain in place in their current format until the end of the 2015/16 school year.

Usage data

The county council has responded to requests made for usage data.

The council previously made available the limited data it had used to test the methodology. However it has become apparent there is more usage data available. It is not considered that this information changes the methodology, or the decision made by Cabinet and full council.

Nonetheless the county council considered it important that members of the public have a chance to review and comment on the new data. The information is on this web page

Background information

On 10 November 2015, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet met to consider public feedback to the subsidised bus and Dial-a-Ride services proposals that were put forward in a consultation held between 19 June and 15 September, and to then make a decision about how to make the savings needed from these services.

Cabinet took the decision that the council withdraw subsidies paid to run 118 subsidised bus routes in Oxfordshire. This decision was approved at the full council’s overall budget setting meeting on 16 February 2016.

It is important to note that the withdrawal of an Oxfordshire County Council bus subsidy does not necessarily mean that the service will be cancelled (or subsidised portion of the service). The operator may decide to continue running it without any county council subsidy or another operator may step in and take it on.

The county council is in discussions with operators and will work with them to try to maintain or commercialise services wherever possible when subsidies are withdrawn.

Dial-a-Ride

A further decision was taken to cease funding the Dial a Ride service as of April 2016. The Council is working work with community transport groups across the county to try and develop schemes which can meet similar needs to those which Dial-a-Ride currently serves.

Annex Xb- Option 1 Services AffectedThis Annex displays the same results as Annex X, but includes a column for Service Subsidy Cost, and one with Patronage (passenger numbers). It is also sorted by locality.

Annex Y- Option 2 Services AffectedThis Annex provides a table of all subsidised bus services in order of their priority, using the councils preferred approach of making savings by prioritising off-peak services.

Annex Z- Option 2 Full Ranking TablesThe Annex gives full ranking tables for Option 2, including the two alternative time bands considered as part of the analysis. For a simplified version of the Option 2 ranking, please see Annex Y.